Slightly Less Blind
by kurt.trout
Summary: Harry becomes slightly less blind.


As Harry settled into his bed in Gryffindor tower for the first time, he was suddenly struck with a thought. He flipped over and began poking Ron, just as the other boy was falling asleep.

"Hey, Ron," whispered Harry.

"Mrghelehh," replied Ron.

Feeling this was getting him nowhere, Harry stood up, stole Ron's blanket, and sat at the foot of his bed. Ron groaned and sat up at the head of the bed.

"Blimey, Harry! What was that for?" asked Ron as he came out of the fog of sleep.

"Ron, what was your mum doing at the train station?"

"Geez, Harry," Ron mumbled, "what kind of question is that? She was dropping me and my brothers off. Dad couldn't make it since he had to get to work (I'm pretty sure it had something to do with an enchanted ukulele), and we're not allowed to go to the station by ourselves. Fred and George would probably breach the statue of secrecy or something with one of their _toys_."

"No, Ron, I understand that," Harry said with a small sigh. "You have two older brothers just out of Hogwarts, right?"

Ron nodded.

"And your mum went to Hogwarts as well?"

Ron nodded again.

"So for at least the last seven years, your family has taken trips to Platform 9 and 3/4 at least twice a year, right?

"Yes, Harry. What're you getting at?" asked Ron.

"Well, what I mean is why was your mum shouting the location of a magical doorway in the middle of a muggle train station? She had to have known where it was and each of your siblings knew as well." Harry crossed his arms and waited for Ron's answer. He didn't know much about wizards, yet, but they couldn't possibly be _that_ dumb.

Ron ran his fingers through his hair as he searched his brain for the right words. His friend was new to the wizarding world and he didn't want to scare him too much.

"You see, Harry, it's kinda complicated," started Ron. He was beginning to look a bit nervous and Harry was starting to get suspicious of Ron's delay.

"How so?"

"Well, the thing is no one's told where the platform is in their letter or by any teachers. You're supposed to figure it out by yourself. It's one of Hogwarts traditions. Unlike the Sorting, however, your family will tell you how to do it or they take you there to see siblings off before you get to go. Unfortunately, this leaves students raised by muggles at a disadvantage since no one will tell them how."

"Wha-!" shouted Harry before Ron clapped a hand over his mouth.

"Shhh! Don't wake the others up!" Ron reinforced his statement with a small glare. "Do you want to hear the rest or not?"

"Yes."

"Alright then. This is where we come in. Every year, one family waits until the last moment to enter the platform. They're supposed to be loud and obviously magical to anyone who knows what they're looking for. This way, anyone looking for the platform's entrance will follow them to the train instead of being left behind."

"What happens if you get left behind?" Harry was worried. His relationship with his 'family' was strained at best and there was no telling how they'd treat him in the years to come.

"If you don't make the train," replied Ron, "you face a load of embarrassment and are shunned by most students. That is unless you make your way to Hogwarts by yourself. Finding your own ways is a great victory since it shows your ingenuity and talent. It is rarely done since underage students can't perform magic and aren't allowed to ask parents for help."

"Why not?"

"That too would lead to shunning."

"There certainly is a lot of shunning here at Hogwarts."

"It's one of the great traditions."

"I seems like Hagrid left a lot out of his explanation of the wizarding world," stated Harry sullenly.

"How else would we get anyone to come?"

Harry scrunched his nose up in thought. In the past, he had tried rubbing his chin in thought and scratching his head in thought, but scrunching his nose up in thought seemed to work best.

"I don't suppose they're considering cash rewards?"

"Probably not."

"Will it get better?"

"Will _what_ get better?"

"Will I be able to learn what I need to know about this world, or will I stumble through life, making mistakes and messing everything up?"

Ron grasped Harry's shoulder in what would have been an extremely manly gesture had it not been for his broomstick pajamas.

"I can assure you that you'll probably mess a whole lot up, regardless of how much you learn about this world. The important thing is that I'll be here, messing up alongside you."

"At least I'm not running into this blind."

Ron quirked an eyebrow at Harry.

"Any more," Harry added hastily.

Ron quirked the other.

"A little less blind, then?"

Ron gave a satisfied nod.

"Fine. We'll visit the library tomorrow. I got me into this mess, and you're not leaving me now."


End file.
